Cap for bottles and the like



Feb. 16 1926.

J. w. DREWITZ CAP FOR BOTTLES 'AND THE LIKE Filed Dec. 5, 1923 llllllllllllll l I!aIIIIlIlIIII/l/IIl/IlI/IIII/[IllIIII/l/l/IIIIIII/IIIIIIIIII Patented Feb. 16, 1926.

UNITED STATES 1,573,147 PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN W. DREWITZ, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CAP FOR BOTTLES AND THE LIKE.

Application filed December a, 1923. Serial No. 678,167.

.the invention comprising a pair of members preferably formed out of suitable sheet metal; the one member being in the nature of a cap and provided on its interior with a suitable sealing element, such as a thin sheet disc or layer of cork; while the other member is rotatably mounted on the skirt portion of the first member; the skirt portion of the first member and said second member being so formed that upon slight rotative movement of the second mentioned member the skirt portion of the first mentioned member, or portions thereof, will be forced into gripping relation with the rim of the bottleneck and cause the cap or top to be held in sealing position; while slight rotative movement of the second mentioned member in the opposite direction will cause the skirt portion, or portions thereof, of the first mentioned member to be forced out of grip- )in aosition and allow the ea) or to) to be removed from the neck of the bottle.

The object of my invention is to provide a cap or top which may be easily applied and removed without requiring excessive force or pressure and which at the same time may be replaced and provide a proper seal for the bottle.

The objects and advantages of my invention will all be more readily comprehended from the detailed description of the accompanying drawing, wherein Figure 1 is a perspective view of the neck of a bottle with my improved cap or top applied thereto and in sealing position.

Figure 2 is a cross sectional view showing the cap or top in sealing position.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the mai portion of the cap or top, with the. controlling band or member removed therefrom.

Figure 4t is a sectional view taken on the line l-l of Figure 2 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 5 is a detail sectional view taken on the line 55 of Figure 2 looking inthe direction of the arrows.

Figure 6 is a similar detail view illustrating a modified form In the particular exemplification of the invention as disclosed in the first five fig- 11168, it comprises a main member or cap 10 of a size commensurate with the orificed end of the neck 11 of the bottle or receptacle; the dished or main portion being provided on its interior with a ring or disc of suitable material, such ascork and the like indicated at 12, whereby the bottle may be hermetically sealed when the cap or top is in sealing condition. providedwith a depending annular flange or skirt 13 concaved to fit about the rim 14 of the neck of thebottle or vessel, while the lower edge of the flange or skirt 13 is preferably flared outwardly and rolled outwardly upon itself or beaded to provide a reenforcing rim as shown at 15. The depending flange 18 is slit transversely at suitable points to provide the separated skirt portions 16, 17 thereby constituting a plurality of independent flexible portions more clearly shown in Figure 3. The skirt portions 16, if desired, may be provided with cut-out portions as at 18, to ensure the easy flexing of theportions 16; it being understood that the cap or top is formed out of thin sheet metal which will permit the respective skirt portions to be easily flexed or bent into sealing and unsealing positions.- lhe skirt portions 16, and preferably'on the reenforcing rim or beaded part thereof, are each provided with offset or cam surfaces 19 The main member or cap 10 is i and 20, see Figure 5; the cam surfaces 19 being disposed on the upper side of the beaded rim and sloping in one direction while the cam surfaces 20, which are disposed on the lower side of the beaded rim, slope in the opposite direction; it being un-,

derstood that the cam surfaces 19 on all of" the skirt portions 16 slope in the same direction and the cam surfaces 20 on the various skirt portions 16 all slope in the same direction.

The entire skirt portion of the cap or top is provided with an encircling band or controlling member 21 which is adapted to fit about the bottle rim engaging part of the skirt portion of the cap and also to curve partially about the beaded lower edge thereof as more clearly shown in Figure 2, which will prevent its removal. The member 21 is intended to be rotated on the skirt portion of the cap proper and the lower curved portion of the band or member 21,(which may sloping portions adapted to have wedging engagement with the sloping surfaces or cam portions 19 and 20 of the flexing parts of the skirt of the cap. That is to say, the

a lower encircling portion of the member 21 at certain predetermined oints, is offset or recessed upwardly as in icated at 22, see Figure 5, to provide a socket portion or recess 23 which becomes shallower toward one end by reason of the sloping wall of the socket and'the lower side of the encircling portion or flange of member 21 at pointscoincident' with the upwardly off-set portions 22 is provided with the off-set or recessed portion 2% (see Figures 2 and 5) which slopes in opposite direction to the upper portion 22, as clearly shown in Figure 5, and provides a lower socket 25, to correspond with the oppositely sloping cam surfaces 19 and 20, respectively.

In the exempliflcation of the invention, the skirt of the cap proper is shown slit to provide four flexing portions 16 and for that reason the encircling member 21 should also be provided with four offset portions both on the upper and lower sides of the curved flange thereof so as to cooperate with the cam-acting surfaces 19 and 20 on each flexible portion 16 of the skirt of the cap. 'The sockets formed by the offset walls 22 and 24 are slightly greater in length than the camacting surfaces 19 and 20.

WVhen the encircling member 21 is turned to the left in Figure 5, the shallow portion of the socket 23 will be positioned whereby the declining wall 22 will engage the camacting or sloping surface 19 of each flexible portion 16 of the-skirt of the cap and thus cause the respective flexible portions 16 to be forced into firm engagement with the rim 1 1 about the neck of the bottle with the result that the cap will be firmly secured in place.

It will be understood that the portions of the flange of encircling member 21, at points intermediate of the sockets 23, 25, are adapted to conform with the beads 15 of the skirt portions 17 so as to freely ride thereon.

By turning encircling band or controlling member 21 to the right in Figure 5 it is evident that the enlarged portion of the upper socket 23 will be positioned to receive camacting surface 19 on the upper side of the flexible portion 16, while the shallower por-,

tion of the lower socket 25, namely the slop ing portion of the wall 24, will engage with the lower cam surface 20 and thus force the flexible portion 16 outwardly and therefore out of gripping relation with therim 14: of the neck of the bottle. As this same condition obtains in the various sockets of the controlling member 21, the various flexing portions lGwill be forced outwardly, thereby releasing the cap and permitting its ready removal from the bottle.

The cap can again be replaced and forced into sealing relation'with the neck of the bottle by simply turning encircling member 21 to the left so as to cause the respective downwardly sloping walls 22 to engage the surfaces 19 and, force the respective flexible portions 16 into gripping relation with the rim of the bottle asshown in Figure 2. The upper POl'tOIl of the encircling member 21 is formed to allow outward flexing of the skirt portions of the cap about the rim 14.

It is apparent that any number of flexible portions 16 in the skirt of the cap may be provided sufficient to firmly grip the neck of I the bottle, instead of employing four flexible portions as shown in the drawing; the encircling or controlling member 21 being, of course, provided with an equal number of offset portions as heretofore described.

In-Figure 6 I show a sectional detail of a portion of the controlling member and the flange of the cap, namely the beaded lower edge, which is to be slit in a manner similar to that shown in Figures 3 and i to provide the non-flexing portions 26 and the flexing portions 27. In, this construction the skirt or flange of the'encircling or controlling member 28, which is intended to fit about the skirt of the cap in a manner similar to that previously shown and de scribed, is provided on its upper surface, at points coincident with the beaded portion of the skirt of the cap, with inwardly bowed portions or recesses like that shown at 29 which are adapted to force the flexible or gripping portions 27 of the skirt of the cap into gripping relation with the rim about the neck of the bottle; while the lower side of the flange of the encircling member 28 is provided with inwardly and upwardly bowed portions or recesses 30 adapted to engage with the lower side of the flexible portions 27 and to force the latter outwardly and therefore out of gripping relation with the rim of the bottle-neck.- The indentations or inwardly curved portions 29 and 30 of the flange of the encircling member are at suitable distances apart circumferentially to permit either the upper or the lower set ofsaid indentations or lugs 29 and 30, as the case may be, to be brought into engagement with the respective flexible portions 27 of theskirt or flange of the cap proper; the upper indentations or lugs 29 forcing said skirt portions into gripping engagement with the rim of the bottle while the lower indentations or lugs 30 force said skirt portions out of gripping relation with the neck of the bottle.

It will be understood that the lower curved flange portion of the encircling or controllng member, in both instances, at points intermediate of the sockets or intermediate of the lugs or indentations are formed so as to in no way affect the other portions, namely the portions 17 or 26 of the skirt of the cap proper.

As is apparent from the drawing, my improved closure is adapted to bottles or jars of the type generally employed, provided with a pouring rim about the neck of the bottle at the orifice; the closure device requiring no specially constructed bottleneck; the constructions illustrated in the drawing I believe are the simplest embodiments of the invention and these constructions have been described in terms which are employed merely as terms of description and not as terms of limitation, as structural modifications are possible and may be made without, however, departing from the spirit of my invention.

lVhat I claim is 1. A device of the character described, comprising a cap member provided with a skirt having flexible portions adapted to form gripping relation with the neck of the bottle, and a controlling member rotatable on the skirt of the cap member, the controlling member and the flexible portions of the skirt being provided with coacti'ng surfaces whereby said flexible portions are forced into bottle-neck gripping position when said controlling member is rotated in one direction and said portions forced out of gripping position when the controlling member is rotated in the opposite direction.

2. A device of the character described, comprising a sealing member provided with a. skirt having a beaded lower edge, the skirt being slit upwardly to provide a plurality of flexible portions at predetermined points in the circumference of the skirt, and a controlling member rotatable about the skirt of the sealing member and encircling the beaded lower edge of the skirt, the controlling member at predetermined points adapted to register with the respective flexile portions of the skirt being provided with wedging surfaces adapted to force the flexible portions into gripping relation with the bottle-neck when said controlling member is rotated in one direction and to force said flexible portions out of gripping relation when said controlling member is rotated in the opposite direction.

3. A device of the character described, comprising a cap provided with depending flexible portions adapted to form gripping relation with the neck of a bottle, and a controlling band encircling said depending portions, the depending portions and said band at predetermined points being rovided with coacting surfaces, the one set of surfaces being adapted to force the depending portions of the cap into gripping rela tion with the neck of the bottle when said band is rotated in one direction, while the other set of surfaces is adapted to force said depending portions out of gripping relation when said band is rotated in the opposite direction.

at. A device of the character described, comprising a cap provided with a skirt adapted to fit about the rim of a bottle-neck, the skirt being slit so as to provide a plurality of separated flexible portions, the

lower portion of the skirtbeing rolled upon itself, and a band mounted on the skirt of the cap and about the lower rolled edge thereof, certain of the separated skirt portions and the band being provided with coacting wedging surfaces whereby rotation of the band in one direction will force some of the separated skirt portions into gripping relation with the neck of the bottle while rotation of said band in the opposite direction will force said skirt portions out of gripping relation.

5. In combination with a bottle having a rim about the neck thereof, a closure memher having a skirt adapted to fit over the rib of the bottle-neck, said skirt being slit so as to provide a plurality of flexible portions, and a member interlocked with and rotatable on said closure member, said second member being internally provided with offset surfaces whereby certain of the flexible skirt portions, upon rotation of the second member in one direction, are forced into gripping relation with the rim of the bottleneck and the gripping relation released when said second member is rotated in the opposite direction.

G. A. device of the character described, comprising a closure member provided with a skirt having flexible portions adapted to form gripping relation with the neck of the receptacle, and a member interlocked with and rotatable on said, closure member, and having controlling relation with the flexible portions of the skirt of the closure member whereby said flexible portions of the skirt are forced into gripping relation or into non-gripping relation with the neck of the receptacle when said second mentioned member is rotated in a predetermined manner.

JOHN lV. DRElVITZ. 

